How to decide what works best for you

[IronInsanity]

A noteworthy quote from my training mentor re deciding on a routine that works best for you:

Muscle doesn't get bored, but the mind sure does. And as we all know, where the mind goes, the body follows. Conversely, if we're not fully invested, progress won't be optimal. There's no teacher as good as experience, and this is very apparent when it comes to deciding on a routine. Each of us is building a catalog of what works and what doesn't, and we add to it every single day, even when we're not training. The big trick is to be able to use that knowledge without prejudice; IOW, to do what we should do, rather than what we'd like to do.

 

[IronInsanity]

A little more...

We all eventually get to a point where we intuitively know when it's time to make changes to set/rep schemes, exercise selection, prioritization, rest times, overall routine planning, etc., etc., and when it's time to just stay the course and work harder at what we're already doing. None of these factors are the same for everyone, not even in how long a guy has to have been training before he reaches that point where he knows. And this whole thing about 'individuality' is where a lot of confusion, misunderstanding, and wasted time and effort in regards to training come into play. It's a real Catch-22; you have to know what you're doing in order to know what to do. Time under the bar is the only way.

 

[PillarofBalance]

Good stuff... Thats why I've just started dumping the volume back into my workouts. Its how I lifted early on and it worked... I only changed because I was constantly being told I was doing too much... Since then it became harder to lose fat and I stopped growing as much.

I think after all this time, and trying so many different things, I now know what I'm doing and therefore, ,know what to do (i hope).

 

[IronInsanity]

Exactly PoB... There are many training experts, but only ONE expert on what works best for you. Unless someone is doing something just plain stupid, it's best to let them go through the experience and learn.

 

[Halo]

I'm a very intuitive lifter and based most of my past workouts on that until I came to Flood and Destroy and Sheiko. With that said I still try and tune into what my body is saying but these two routines designed to make you bigger and stronger and with Sheiko bigger and stronger on the three main lifts, I think these new (new for me) ways of punishing and growing have made a huge difference my numbers are up my measurements are up. The reason I emphasize these two workouts is that they both took me out of my comfort zone and many days I didn't want to do the work or didn't want to continue in the middle of it because my body was registering near injury beat down, but I did the work and the payoff has been profound.

 

[FitnessFreek]

That's the truth! Thanks for posting it up

 

[Shamrockbear1]

Been using the sheiko method, and currently loving it especially for use older guys 40+. I think when I was yonger I was under the impression that heavy loads low and high volume was better and some worked and some did not. I tried the flood and destory method and had tons of joint pain some minor tendonitis which since has disappeared.
Feeling stronger and seeing better gains with sheiko I believe also that the constant change up keeps your muscles guessing. One thing I think also helps is focusing heavy days with large compound movement and save the what I like to call finishing movements for lighter higher rep day like tris-- rope pull downs and kickbacks ect..

 

[GreatGunz]

Upper body/ lower body 2x a week,Or presently a form of Dc training.

 

[oldschool1967]

im a hard headed fuck, i will on occasion remove myself from a routine and replace it with another i am familiar with. i change for my sake, i never say 'hey that looks great, ill start this tomorrow', but i would really love to try the sheiko!

 

[Mindlesswork]

its definitely too easy to get stuck in a rut doing the same routines over and over that's for sure. Switching things up and adding new and different exercises do help break the monotony and "shocks" your body as it wasn;t expecting that new routine

To me variation is everything...but everyone does things differently.

 

[SHINE]

its definitely too easy to get stuck in a rut doing the same routines over and over that's for sure. Switching things up and adding new and different exercises do help break the monotony and "shocks" your body as it wasn;t expecting that new routine

To me variation is everything...but everyone does things differently.

You actualy workout ?

 

[Mindlesswork]

You actualy workout ?

Ya I sure do!